‘The Most Appeasing Line’: New Zealand and Nazi Germany, 1935-40

摘要

New Zealand's first Labour government has generally been depicted as opposing compromise with aggressive states during the late 1930s, thereby demonstrating an ‘independent’ and ‘moral’ foreign policy. Yet it consistently advocated negotiations with Nazi Germany, signed a trade agreement with it, welcomed the Munich settlement, discouraged public criticism of the German government and pursued a half-hearted rearmament programme. Most strikingly, it advocated a negotiated peace following the Nazi conquest of Poland and left the decision whether to fight on after the fall of France to the British government's judgement. Labour's motives included opposition to the Versailles Treaty, anti-militarism, suspicion of the British National Government, sympathy for the Soviet Union, a focus on the possible threat from Japan and, paradoxically, a desire for greater independence.View full textDownload full textRelated var addthis_config = { ui_cobrand: "Taylor & Francis Online", services_compact: "citeulike,netvibes,twitter,technorati,delicious,linkedin,facebook,stumbleupon,digg,google,more", pubid: "ra-4dff56cd6bb1830b" }; Add to shortlist Link Permalink http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/03086530903538244